Missing
by FranknNancyHardy
Summary: FV.  Nancy Drew and Frank Hardy were finally together and were getting married.  But they didn't last. Nancy was killed. 5 years later, Frank and Joe have their own agency. Frank is a shell of his former self. Will Vanessa help him be himself again.
1. Prologue

**Disclaimer: I don't own the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew, Vanessa Bender, Iola, Ned, Callie or Andrea Bender. Everyone else i do :P.**

**Yes you read correctly in the disclaimer, Iola _is_ alive and is married to Joe. Ned and Callie only appear briefly as does Nancy in flashbacks.**

**The concept/storyline of this story is borrowed from an orignal story i wrote but didn't post anywhere because it wasn't a good enough story. But im hoping to make this one much much, better.**

_5 years ago_

_It was a joyous occasion in Bayport as everyone that knew them were invited to the wedding of Frank Hardy and Nancy Drew._

_After years of not being able to act on their feelings, their time finally came when both Ned Nickerson and Callie Shaw couldn't take anymore of their mystery solving and the looks they gave each other from time to time._

_But this day would be very short-lived as the newlyweds would not be newlyweds for long. _

_After the wedding was over, and the new couple were walking towards the limo that would take them to the reception, it seemed that out of nowhere came a dark complected, Hispanic man with a shotgun and looked as if he would kill the newlyweds. Everyone was screaming and trying to get out of the way during which someone accidently bumped the man with the gun and as a result he pulled the trigger._

_Then it was like everything stopped. After a few seconds, the silence was over as a faint whisper escaped Nancy's mouth. "Frank..." Frank looked down at her upon hearing this and he couldn't believe his eyes. What he saw was a giant red stain on Nancy's beautiful wedding dress. He couldn't believe what had just occured. 'Why would someone want to kill Nancy? And on our wedding day at that!' Frank silenty thought to himself._

_"Frank...I'm cold." Nancy said. Frank looked from the red spot up to her face and told her, "Sshh...you'll be alright. Just as soon as we get you to the hospital." A tear rolled down his cheek as he said this. Nancy replied, "There isn't enough time." _

_Of course, as soon as the shot rang out and the silence started someone immediately called the paramedics. _

_A minute after Nancy last spoke, the ambulance arrived. The paramedics got out and tried to sustain her injuries but to no avail. "I'm sorry." One of them said after they stopped trying to revive her. "NO!!!!!" was all Frank was able to let out as he started sobbing quietly, rocking back and forth cradling Nancy in his lap._

_A few days later they had the funeral. Everyone that knew her got up to say a few words about Nancy and how she lived her life. Frank was the last one to go up. All he was able to say was "Nancy..." before his body was overcome with grief and he slid to his knees, sobbing. Joe was the first one to his side. Joe didn't say anything because he knew his words would fall on deaf ears at that time. Occasionally he would tell Frank "It's ok. Just let it out." while he rocked his older brother. _

_Eventually the funeral was over and everyone went to give Frank and the Hardys their condolences but Frank would just stand there, stoic. After he finished sobbing earlier, he suddenly didn't feel anything. Not grief, sorrow, anything. He felt numb to everything and everyone._

**The Present**

Frank Hardy was just about finished with another day's work at the Hardy Detective Agency. Him and Joe created the agency right after Joe graduated from Bayport University. He majored in Criminal Psychology while Frank majored in Forensic Science with a minor in Computer Engineering. Nancy Drew-Hardy was to join them when she and Frank were married but as result of that tragic wedding day, that never happened. Since her death, Frank wasn't the same person he once was. Joe tries his best to bring him around to the old Frank along with Iola and their parents and friend's help but to no avail. Even Bess and George, Nancy's two best friends tried as well but they weren't effective either.

Now, it's like Frank is just a hollow shell of his former self. He doesn't go out with their friends as much as he used to and he definitely doesn't date anymore. He decided after Nancy's funeral that he wouldn't get involved with a female on that level ever again because of their line of work. But what he didn't know was that his outlook on the opposite sex was going to change forever.

**A/N: So what does everyone think so far. Next chapter will introduce Vanessa and her family. Don't forget to review and leave any comments you may have to progress the story further. I'm open to suggestions but I won't make too many changes. As I mentioned above, this is a re-do of an origninal story of mine i wrote years ago but it wasn't long enough and didn't really have any 'life' to it. But I'm welcome to advice on how to make this one better.**


	2. How it All Began

It was a hot summer night in June. If one would look at a thermostat it would only read 82 degrees but with the humidity it felt a tad over 100. On this night, a family by the name of Bender would never be the same again. Everyone except the daughter, Vanessa, would be kidnapped by the the most powerful, most feared gang in all the United States, if not the world. They are the Wolfpac. They came and took everyone except Vanessa because she was spending time at a friends house when the kidnapping occured.

It wasn't until the next morning when Vanessa came home did she find out that her family was nowhere to be found. Her parents, Mark and Andrea and older brother Adam were gone. She looked everywhere in the house for them. '_Well',_ she thought, _maybe they just went out for breakfast or something.'_ So she decided to wait for them a little while. After an hour and they still didn't show up, Vanessa started getting very worried. She decided to look throughout the house one more time just in case. During her search, she found the kidnappers' note. It read, in big, blotchy red letters:

If you want to live, don't go to the police and don't tell anyone anything.

The only signature was a picture of a wolf's head. She carefully folded it up and put it in her pocket. Then she grabbed her purse and left in pursuit of a private investigator or something like that. She decided that she wasn't going to just sit and do nothing. She went into town looking for an office of some kind. After about fifteen minutes of walking and searching did she finally find what she was looking for. There, across the street, in big letters on the window read: Hardy Detective Agency. After looking both ways, she quickly crossed the street and went inside.

Once she entered, she noticed on how the place looked inside. In the middle of the room were two desks pushed together facing each other. On the left hand side were a few filing cabinets. On the right side was a long table with various things on it (i.e. maginfying glasses, lock picks, tools of the trade). On the back wall facing her was a big bulletin board with various news clippings, rap sheets, among other things on it. There was also a doorway that led to another couple of rooms.

One was a small kitchen complete with a coffee maker, refrigerator and a small table where the two would sit to eat at times when things were slow and they could enjoy their food. Then she found what she was looking for. At one of the desks stood a blonde haired man dressed in dark navy slacks, a white dress shirt with the sleeves rolled halfway up his arms and a blue tie that was unknotted a little and the top button of the shirt was unbuttoned, making it easier for him to breathe.

She then saw him turn off the desk lamp on his desk, grab his navy sports jacket, fling it over his shoulder and head her way. Once he saw her, he stopped and asked "Can I help you miss?"

She then told him in a quick frightened voice, "Yes! Yes you can. My family's been kidnapped." as she pulled out the note. He looked at her and told her, "I'm sorry miss but unfortunately _I_ can't help you but maybe my brother/partner can be of help to you." Then he yelled towards the back "Frank! Get out here! You got a client!" He gave her a apologetic smile and turned to leave. She turned towards him and held his arm, getting him to stop momentarily.

"Why can't you help me?" she asked, her eyes pleading for him to help. "Ma'am, I'm sorry but I have to get home to my wife. She doesn't like it when I try to handle too many cases at one time." he told her, giving her a sad smile. "Oh. I understand then. Will your brother help me though?" she asked. "Frank? Oh most definitely. He lives for this stuff. Unfortunately though, its all he does nowadays. He hardly has time for anything else. Well, I must be off. You take care and I hope you find your family Miss..." he replied.

"Bender. Vanessa Bender." she told him. He then said, "Nice to meet you Miss Bender. Good night." _'She's attractive, but wait, what am I doing? Checking out another woman while I have a wife to get home to. If only Iola knew what I was doing right now...'_ Joe thought, quickly shuddering for a moment. With that he started walking to his apartment a few blocks down. Vanessa turned back around just in time to see a tall, dark, and unfortunatley kind of pale looking man emerge from somewhere in the back. She walked up to him and asked "Will you please help me? Your brother told me you would. My family's been kidnapped and I don't know what..."

"Hold on a minute," Frank told her, putting his hands in the air to quiet her a moment. "Let me get you a chair and then you can tell me what happened." As he moved, he looked at her and was amazed by her beauty. She stood almost as tall as he did with long ash blonde hair, gray-blue eyes and a slender body. She was dressed in a dark blue shirt and jean shorts, which showed off her nicely tanned legs. _'Wow', _Frank thought with a low whistle_, she's beautiful. No, scratch that. Absolutely gorgeous. Of all the women I've seen since Nancy, no one could even compare to Nancy until now. All right Frank, slow down, and concentrate. This may be a new case. You haven't had one for a little while now other than helping Joe with his. _Frank then stopped thinking about the woman standing only a few feet away from him and finished grabbing a chair for her to sit in.

Vanessa watched as the tall, dark and _attractive_ man went and retrieved a chair for her to sit in. She took in his good looks. He stood tall at 6'1" and was wearing a dark brown suit with a lighter brown colored tie which was unknotted like the other detective's was but this one kept his sports jacket on.

"Now, tell me again what happened Miss..." Frank started.

"Bender. Vanessa Bender." she replied. "Frank Hardy." he answered back. They briefly shook hands before she went on to tell him what happened the night before. After she finished, she handed him the note. He looked at it and opened his eyes wide in disbelief of what he was looking at.

"What? What is it?" she asked. "Do you know who sent this?" he countered, looking at her. She shook her head. She then started silenty cry. He slid his chair closer and let her rest her head on his shoulder. "Who are they?"

"They are the most powerful gang in the country if not the world. Their name is 'the Wolfpac'" Frank told her.


	3. Possible Motive

"I've heard of them before...sort of." she said. "How do you know about them?" he asked her. She then replied back, saying "My dad had a _friend_ long ago who is their leader. His name is Antonio Lopes.(**A/N: pronounced just like Lopez)** He was fired from a secret government agency by being involved in a huge scandal and my dad's responsible for Lopes' unemployment."

Afterwards, he suddenly told her, "For your safety, I'll drive you to a hotel and register you under a different last name and I'll do the same for myself." He then held his hand out for her, which she took and helped her up. He grabbed his keys and then walked her outside. He turned, locked up, and then led her to his car. After they were seated inside, he drove over to her home to pack a few things and then drove to the 'Millenium Hilton Hotel'. Once they arrived, they got out. Frank handed his keys to the valet and walked her inside. While they were checking in, Frank got the sudden feeling that the two of them were being watched. He turned around but didn't see anything. All he saw were other people walking in and out of the lobby.

When he finished checking them both in, he handed her a slip of paper and said "Here's my cell number. You can reach me anytime you feel you're frightened or threatened." "Thank you for your hospitality and for your kindness and concern for me." she replied back, walking over to him and giving him a gentle kiss on the cheek. Frank momentarily blushed. _'Wow, haven't felt this way about a woman in a looong time.'_ Frank thought.

They then proceeded to walk towards the elevators and then up to her room. He wanted to make sure she got in okay.

After saying goodnight, he left and she proceeded to unpack. When she finished, she turned the tv on to WNN(**not to be confused with CNN lol). **Not even ten seconds after she turned it on, the newsanchor began talking about the Bender family kidnapping. A second later, they showed two pictures in the top left hand corner. One was of 26 year old Frank Hardy and the other of 25 year old Vanessa Bender. The newsanchor then said "Unidentified sources say that Ms. Bender has hired Mr. Hardy to look into this case." As the anchor continued talking, footage was being shown of Frank helping Vanessa into his car. Vanessa got tired of watching so she turned it off.

An hour later, Frank went back to her room to check up on her. After letting him in, she told him "This has been all over the news". "I know, I've seen it too." was his reply. Then he told her, "I found out where their hideout is located." "Well, what are we waiting for, let's go." she said excitedly, starting towards the door.

"No, not just yet." Frank replied. Vanessa walked back towards him and sat down dejectedly, giving him a look that said 'And why the hell not?' After seeing her glare over at him, he quickly said "I've had a few hidden cameras placed to watch their activities."

"Oh. Well then. Did you find anything dealing with the kidnapping itself?" she asked, sparks of hope dancing in her eyes. He looked down, not able to look her in the eyes when he told her, "Sorry, I don't have anything new right now." She frowned and then asked him "How did you find out where its located?"

With a smile, he told her "I asked a former member of the gang who now works for the NYPD and who's a friend of mine." Then, changing the subject he asked "Would you like to have dinner with me tonight?"

Vanessa smiled and said "I would love to".

He got up and left to go change. He changed into a navy blue suit. She changed into a ruby red sequinned dress that went down to her ankles but complimented her curves.

They went to the restaurant _Gin Lane_. After dinner, they decided to walk back to the hotel under the moonlight. Upon arriving at her door, she told Frank, "I had a nice time tonight. It help take my mind off the kidnapping. Thank you again." "It was my pleasure" he told her. Then the two of them started to lean in for a kiss but they didn't kiss. Frank muttered to himself, "I can't do this", unsure of what his feelings were towards Vanessa at the moment and he didn't want to do anything that could jeopardize his professional relationship with her. At the same time, Vanessa was thinking _'He seems like a really nice guy but I wonder how come he stopped before we kissed. I hope it wasn't because of me.' _A tiny frown appeared on her face. Then she looked down towards the floor, unlocked the door and went inside. She didn't shut the door the whole way.

As he turned to leave, he heard her shriek. He quickly opened the door and ran inside, towards her. She was in hysterics. He asked, "What's the matter, Van?" Earlier, at dinner, he had asked her if he could call her that and she said that it was ok.

_"THIS!"_ she exclaimed, handing him a note. It read:

_IF YOU WANT TO SEE YOUR FAMILY AGAIN ALIVE, TELL YOUR DETECTIVE FRIEND TO MIND HIS OWN BUSINESS_

The signature was again a red wolf's head. The note was made up of letters from magazines and newspapers.

Vanessa was really upset after this turn in events and shrieked at him, "If I'd known this would happen, I'd never would've hired you!"

Frank replied back, "You don't mean that." "Yes I do." Vanessa told him, matter-of-factly.

A week went by, with him checking up on her at the hotel at least twice per day. Once in the morning and once at night. One morning during this, Frank was in the office early like always trying to find something useful to help with the case when Joe arrived for the day. "Hey Frank." Joe spoke as soon as he closed the door. He walked over to his desk and sat down and then proceeded to look over at his big brother/partner. Joe couldn't help but smile at Frank because to Joe, Frank looked differently than he had in the last five years. "So," he began, "how's the new case coming? And how's the client" he added playfully. Frank looked at him after the last part and just glared at him like he usually does.

"What?" Joe answered, smirking. "You know I had to ask. It's been a while since you've taken on _female_ clients. And is it so wrong for me to see my brother begin to feel a little happy at the thought of a beautiful woman again." Joe told him.

"She's fine Joe. But she's just a little freaked out at the fact that someone has her family and she doesn't know what to do." Frank answered, then silently added in his head _'We almost kissed but I stopped it. As usual. Just when I feel even the slightest twinge of maybe, possibly falling in love again, I think back to five years ago and tell myself that that can't happen again.'_

"As for the case, well you won't believe who I'm after this time Joe." Frank then added.

"Who's it this time?" Joe asked, not sure of what the answer might be.

"The Wolfpac". was all Frank said. At the mention of that name, Joe spit out his coffee onto the floor, barey missing himself. "WHAT?!" Joe exclaimed, "You can't be serious. Why would they be involved?"

"Well, from what Van's told me, they did it because her father got their leader fired a long time ago from some secret government agency. And I'm guessing he's looking for revenge." After a while, Frank pulled up the surveillance footage online on his computer to see anything that might help but didn't find anything useful.

Later on that day, Frank headed towards the hotel once again to check up on her. Once he was there and she let him in, he went over and sat down on the edge of one of the beds and looked over at her. She was sitting in a chair across the room just staring off into space. She was crying softly. She wore jeans and a navy blue blouse. "What's the matter, Van?" he asked. "There's another note." was the reply as she pointed to where it lay on the table. He got up, walked over and picked it up off the table. The paper the note was on wasn't as large as the others had been. Again the letters were from cut out magazines. It read:

THIS IS YOUR LAST CHANCE MISS BENDER. TELL YOUR FRIEND AND HIS NOSY BROTHER TO MIND THEIR OWN BUSINESS OR WE'LL KILL YOUR FAMILY AND WE'LL COME TO KILL YOU AS WELL.

The red wolf's head was at the bottom of this one as well.


	4. Got Love?

**A/N: It won't be til towards the end of this chapter but the romance finally begins here. Again, I don't own Frank and Vanessa.**

After reading this, he got up and went to leave to go to his room for a minute. She saw this and immediately screamed "Don't you dare leave me here all by myself!" She then walked over to him, and hugged him tightly as if she was hanging on for dear life. He put his arms around her and hugged her back while telling her softly, "Hey. Don't worry. I'll be right back, I promise. I have to go check in my room for a minute. Think you can hold on for that long?" She didn't say anything but she curtly nodded her head. He kissed the top of her head and quickly left.

Upon arriving at his room, which was on the floor right below her, he saw that his room had been ransacked and tossed. He quickly checked over everything to see if anything was missing. Fortunately, nothing was missing. Then a thought quickly came to him. "Oh no! I better hurry and check on Van before something happens to her." he said softly to himself. Then he bolted out of his room, raced down the short hallway between his room and the stairs, and then ran towards her room.

When he walked in, he saw that her room was now like his was. Ransacked and tossed. _'What are they looking for? Or was this just a ploy to distract me. Damn it!'_ he quickly swore to himself. Then he looked around and a sudden panic filled his entire body. He didn't see Van anywhere! He then started looking around the room for her. As he was looking, he heard a scream coming from the direction of the patio. He ran towards it. He didn't see anyone there until he heard it again. He looked towards the street. He saw that she was being carried by two people and then placed into a black van. The two thugs were wearing all black, complete with skimasks. He looked at the van and saw the wolf's head on the side of it. He silently swore agin. He jumped over the railing and down the two stories that were between him and the ground. He didn't quite land on his feet but luckily he escaped the fall with barely a scratch on him. He ran to his car, got in, and raced after the van.

A few minutes later, he was outside the city in the middle of nowhere still chasing after them. They eventually stopped at their hideout, which was an older building surrounded by trees. Frank stayed in his car for a few seconds. He watched as the gang members exited the van, with Vanessa in tow, who was scared out of her mind but somehow remained quiet, and entered the building. Waiting just a few seconds longer just to make sure everyone entered, Frank quietly hopped out of his car and quietly proceeded to enter the building.

As soon as he was inside, he began searching for her. He walked into the first room on his left. As he looked around the room, he saw her sitting in the center of the room. She was tied to a chair. Frank thought to himself, _'This was too easy. Either they're really stupid or they wanted to make it really easy for me.'_ The only light in the room was courtesy of the bright full moon coming from the only window which was to his right, her left.

Vanessa saw that someone entered the room but all she saw was their silhouette. She thought it was a gang member coming into the room so she started to get more frightened than she already was when Frank started moving closer towards her. He whispered, "It's only me." The light was shining upon her face and when Frank told her it was him inside the room, he saw that she started to relax a little. He untied her hands from behind her and carefully took the duct tape off her mouth. When he finished that, she brought her arms up and hugged him as tightly if not more than before and whispered "Thank you for rescuing me. I'm so scared of something happening to me, my family, or both." As soon as she finished, she teared up and started to cry silently.

Frank was already hugging her at this point. He told her quietly, "Shh. It's alright. You're safe now. I'm here for you and don't worry. I'm not going to ever leave you out of my sight again until this is over."

They then both got up, walked out of the room and carefully looked around for the rest of her family. Frank held her hand and told her to stay behind him in case someone came out in front of them wanting to cause bodily harm. Unfortunately, they were unable to find the Benders. _'This is another of their hideouts I bet'_ he thought to himself. All of a sudden, they both then heard a motor running. The two of them quickly ran outside and got into his car. They began to race after the van.

The van's driver noticed that they were being followed and turned onto a hidden road. It was so well hidden that Frank didn't see them after they pulled off the main road.

"Well, I guess that's that. Looks like we'll just have to go back to the hotel and wait." Frank told her, trying to continually calm her down from the night's earlier activities. After travelling for about a half hour or so, they finally made it back to the hotel. Vanessa had gone to sleep on the way back. He gently woke her and told her that they were 'home'. After reaching her room and she unlocked it, she opened the door and stood there with a look of confusion and shock written all over her face. "Something strange is going on here." she quietly said but Frank was able to hear every word.

"What do you mean?" he asked. "Look! My room's all clean and back to normal. I know _I_ didn't do it and _you_ didn't do it." she replied. After looking into her room, he quickly led her to his room downstairs and when they walked into his room, they found it was exactly like hers: cleaned up and back to normal.

They both walked back up to her room and once there, he began looking for clues. The only thing he found was another note lying underneath the mattress of the bed. He only found it because a tiny part of one of the corners was sticking out. He showed it to her. This time the note was handwritten. It read:

If you want to see your family again, bring twenty thousand dollars tonight at 10pm to Liberty Island

After reading it, the pair began looking around, making sure nothing was taken. Nothing was missing. At 9:30, the pair drove to a part of the docks along the harbor where Frank and Joe kept their boat _The Slueth_ docked. This _Slueth_ was a more modern version than the one they had as teenagers. Frank helped Vanessa into the boat and then proceeded to get it ready for takeoff. He then steered the boat towards Liberty Island. They arrived at Liberty Island with a few minutes to spare. Frank helped Vanessa out of the boat and they walked slowly and cautiously towards the lights at the base of the Statue of Liberty to wait for the gang member or members they were to meet. Ten p.m. came and went with no one showing up. They decided to wait till 10:30 before giving up and going back. Once back on land, he drove them to the hotel.

At the hotel, Vanessa told Frank that she didn't think she could make it up to her room under her own power. So Frank carefully picked her up in a fireman's carry and carried her up to her room. She unlocked the door and then Frank carried her inside to her bed. He gently laid her down, took her shoes off and kissed her forehead goodnight. He then went down to his room to change and then he turned the TV on to the news.

Five minutes later, his cell rang. It was Vanessa calling.

"Frank..." Vanessa began in a soft but frightened tone.

"What is it?" Frank asked.

"I think there's someone here outside my window. It's locked but I'm afraid he might break it open and come inside." she replied.

"Don't move, I'll be right there." Frank said as he ended the call.

Frank went to put pants on, grabbed his gun and ran up to her room. He turned the knob and found it was unlocked. _That's weird. She never leaves it unlocked_ Frank thought.

As he walked inside the room, he looked around and didn't see her anywhere. All of a sudden he was hit from behind on the head with a lamp. Vanessa had knocked him out!. A few minutes later, he regained conscioiusness. When he came to, he saw that she was applying ice to where she had hit him.

"I'm really sorry I hit you. I thought you was someone else." She quietly told him, ashamed she had hit him. He saw that she looked upset about it. He took his hand, lifted her chin up so she could look at him and told her "It's okay. I thought they came to kidnap you again and sent someone back to knock me out."

Then he asked, "Why was the door unlocked? It's never unlocked."

"I left it unlocked so you could get in, dummy". she replied, saying that last word in a playful way. Then she told him, "I called because I thought I saw someone's face pressed against the glass."

"Either it was or it was just your imagination getting the best of you." Frank explained. He got up and walked to the patio door and opened it. He stepped out and didn't see anything or any_one_ hiding out there.

When he came back into the room, he told her, "It was just your imagination. You've seen too many faces lately that would probably frighten anyone." He then hugged her as if to say its okay to be a little scared.

"To make me feel better, please stay here tonight." she called out to him as he was beginning to go to his room. "Okay. I'll stay and keep watch all night if I have to." he assured her. Then he winked at her.

He then kissed her cheek goodnight and then went to sit in a chair facing her bed. He watched as she finished climbing into bed and drifted off to sleep. It wasn't long after that he drifted off as wel. So much for keeping watch all night long.

The following morning, Frank awoke early. He found a pen and pad and quickly wrote her a note. It read:

Went to get a newspaper and coffee. Should be back in fifteen minutes.

Then he walked out of the room. At eight, Vanessa woke up and noticed he wasn't there. She started to panic until she saw the note resting beside her. She picked it up and read it. A feeling of comfort washed over her right then. As soon as she finished reading it, he came back with the paper, coffee and his mail he hadn't gotten to look through in a week. While he was out, Frank stopped by the office to quickly tell Joe what had happened since the last time they had a chance to talk. "Joe says hello by the way", Frank said to her, chuckling a little, remembering exactly what Joe had said but didn't want to repeat it. Even though Joe was happily married, the so called Joe Hardy charm was still ever present. Vanessa smiled.

Once they were finished reading the paper and drinking their coffee, they began talking about their plans for the day. Then the phone rang. Frank went to answer it. It was the Wolfpac calling.

"Hello?" Frank asked into the receiver.

"To see the family again, go to John Street Bar & Grill at 12 noon today". The person on the other end said. Then they hung up.

Since the bar wasn't that far away, the two of them left the hotel around quarter till noon. They went inside and waited for whoever to show up.

At noon, no one showed up. "Just another prank call", Frank told her as they got up to leave the bar. Then all of a sudden Vanessa ran out and into the street. Frank ran right after her and pulled back out from the middle of the street. _Van would've been killed or severely injured if I didn't get there in time_, Frank thought to himself. _This woman is putting me through emotional hell just like..._ Frank couldn't manage to finish that thought. It was still too painful, even after all these years since her death. Frank quickly shook his head, clearing his mind of those thoughts.

Frank then turned and saw Vanessa's would-be assassin. It was the Wolfpac's van. Then the side van door opened and a machine gun appeared and began shooting at them. He turned and used his body to shield her. Luckily they weren't shot.

Frank turned to Vanessa and half-screamed at her "Why did you run out like that? You could've been killed."

Vanessa replied "I saw my dad's face in the window of the van and ran towards him. Thank you for rescuing me and caring so much about me. You're so sweet." Then she kissed him. Frank was taken aback for a second or two, not sure what to do or how to feel exactly. He then said "If you were killed, I wouldn't be able to solve this case."

He helped her up and they slowly walked back to the hotel since Vanessa wasn't quite able to walk regularly because she was still shaken up. When they got to the lobby, he picked her up and carried her to the elevator, and when they got to her floor, carried her to her room. Then he said, "Let's just go inside and relax and take a break from all this. It's been a long morning."

About an hour later, while she was leaning next to him, with his fingers running through her hair,she looked up at him and asked, "Do you think we'll ever see each other again after this is over?"

"I don't honestly know. You never know what the future's going to have in store for you. Why do you ask?" he replied, silently adding _I hope we do see each other again after this. Again and again and again..._ His mind wandered off after that.

"I was just wondering, that's all." she answered back, looking down with a mischevious smile on her face. _I hope we get to see each other again. I think I'm beginning to fall for this man._ She thought.

During the course of the next few weeks, they decided, especially Frank, to just give into their feelings and they fell in love. Vanessa was the first one to admit she had feelings for Frank. When she admitted it to him, Frank was utterly dumbstruck. After a while longer, Frank finally admitted to her he had feelings for her as well. Once they admitted it to each other, Frank had told her about his painful past and why he was the way he was before she came along. Then Vanessa started helping him along and teaching him how to love all over again.

One night, after dinner, they walked back to the hotel. Once inside the elevator, they began kissing each other passionately. Frank's hands were around her waist while Vanessa's hands were either around his neck, in his hair, etc. When the elevator stopped at her floor, they stopped momentarily and she almost dragged him down the hall to her room. She unlocked the door, opened it and dragged him inside. Once inside the room, they resumed kissing passionately and then their feelings really took over as they began to undress each other and made their way to the bed.

Later that night, after Vanessa had fallen asleep, Frank was still awake, contemplating his actions earlier in the night and his feelings. _Wow, it's been too long since I've done that. I can't believe I let myself push off these feelings towards any woman like I did. At first I knew why I did, but then as the years went by, it was just easier to continue than to stop and let my heart lead me. I think, for the first time since that awful day five years ago, I can truly say I'm beginning to be happy again emotionally. _Frank thought. Then he quietly said to the sleeping form beside him, "Van, I thank you for coming into my life and teaching me how to love again. I love you." He pushed some of her hair away from her peaceful looking face and kissed her cheek.

**Hope you all liked it and for those who were waiting for the romance to begin, I'm hoping this finally satisfied you. Please review!**


	5. Connections

A few days later, Frank was in the office again to check in with Joe and catch him up on the case, sift through phone messages, sift through the mail among other things. After he was finished, he was still waiting for Joe to come in for the day. While he waited, Frank pulled out his wallet and took all pictures that were in it out. There were one of him, Joe and their parents; one of him and Joe; Joe by himself; Joe and Iola. When got to the last of the pictures, he smiled an even bigger smile than the one he previously had. They were various pictures of Vanessa. Some of them he had taken of her, she gave him a few and then there were a couple from a photo booth.

While Frank was looking through the pictures, Joe finally arrived. Seeing that Frank was a little occupied with something, he crept up silently towards Frank's desk. When he got close enough to the desk to see what Frank was up to, he takes the time to tease Frank a little. "Whatcha got there big brother?"

Frank was momentarily startled at Joe's question and tried to hide his emotions but was too late. "Uh...nothing important." Frank replied. "I don't know Frank. Looks awfully important to me." Joe teased again. Joe saw that Frank just couldn't stop smiling like an idiot. "What, or shall I say, _who_ has the dark, brooding Frank up in happy land again?" Joe was happy that Frank was smiling again. Words couldn't express how happy he was that his big brother was slowly returning to the brother he used to know. "Vanessa, that's who. Joe, I can't tell you how happy I feel when she's around. I haven't felt this good since...well, you know, since Nancy."

"Well, I for one am extremely happy for you Frank that you've found someone who could make you happy again." Joe replied back. Then Frank laid down a bombshell to him. "Joe, I think I'm going to propose to Van, as soon as this case is over with." Joe stood there dumbfounded for a few seconds before being able to say, "What? Are you serious? You haven't even known her that long."

"I know", Frank replied, "but I can't help but think and feel that she's the one who can make me the happiest, like Nancy used to. I know its a little sudden, but I can't help it." Joe couldn't think of anything in response to that so he just grabbed Frank into a bear hug and then was able to tell Frank, "Well, again, I'm happy for you. If you think she's the one, I say go for it." "Thanks Joe. It means a lot. And before you even ask, yes, you will be my best man...again." Frank chuckled.

Then Frank saw a look in Joe's eyes and told him, "Yes, Joe, go ahead and call Iola and tell her the good news while I call mom and dad."

After getting off the phone to their parents and telling them the good news, Frank turned to his computer and logged on to the internet. He searched for pictures that were taken at his first wedding that the press had taken. He had the thought that the man he had put away for Nancy's murder was somehow linked to the Wolfpac. After a few minutes searching he found what he was looking for. It wasn't a really great picture but it was good enough. He then looked up information on Antonio Lopes and was immediately given what he wanted. He found an old picture from a newspaper clipping from the time Lopes was fired. Frank took in Lopes' looks. _Now why does his face look familiar, _Frank thought, _Wait a minute..._ Frank then opened a second window and brought up the picture of the man who murdered Nancy and put the two pictures side by side. Frank looked from one to the other and back again.

The two men looked very similar and if one didn't take the time to really look, they would've thought it was the same person. Frank then searched deeper on Lopes to find any mention of his family. It didn't take long to find what he was looking for. He found that Lopes has an older brother who was sentenced to prison on numerous drug charges as well as a murder charge from five years ago.

_Flashback - Days after Nancy's funeral_

_Frank searched for Nancy's killer almost non-stop since her funeral. It took him a while to find anything on the guy but caught a break when the gun that was used was discarded in a dumpster not far from the cemetary. Frank couldn't believe that it was still there, undisturbed. Frank took it and had it fingerprinted. Once the results were in, Frank took the information and began searching for any information he could find on the guy. _

_The guy's name was Pedro Lopes. He was a new and upcoming gang leader. He had just formed a gang named 'the Wolfpac'. Frank thought it was weird that Pedro spelled wolfpack without the 'k' but pushed that thought aside since it didn't have anything to do with what he was working on. Frank then found out that the guy had a rap sheet filled with numerous drug charges that somehow didn't quite seem to stick. 'Well', Frank thought, 'They'll stick this time.' So Frank requested and obtained a search warrant for Pedro's house. Frank and the fellow officers he had with him went to Pedro's house, and searched it from top to bottom, leaving nothing unturned. What they found was staggering._

_They found numerous amounts of cocaine and heroin hidden in a closet in the basement that was locked. During the search, Pedro had not been there. When Frank and company finished and headed back to their vehicles, Pedro was on his way home when he saw them. Pedro then took off running. Frank was the first one to go after him. After chasing him for a long while, Frank finally caught up to him and pushed Pedro up against a wall, placing handcuffs on him. "You're under rest for possession of cocaine and heroin as well as for the murder of Nancy Drew-Hardy." Frank told him. Frank then read him his rights and when he finished a squad car had pulled up to their location. Frank handed Pedro over to one of the officers and then walked to his office, feeling a little happy now that Nancy's killer has been found and arrested._

Also, during his search, Frank had found out that Mark, Van's dad, had been one of Pedro's jurors at Pedro's murder trial. '_So maybe that's why Antonio kidnapped Van's family. To get back at Mark for helping put his brother away,' Frank thought._

It was a few nights later when Frank and Vanessa were at the hotel in her room and she had gone to bed at midnight when Frank received a phone call. When he picked up, the voice on the other end told him, "You want to know where the Benders are? I can tell you _if_ you and the Bender girl are willing to cooperate." "Who are you?" Frank asked the mystery man. The voice said, "Shut up and listen. Meet me at the same bar we told you last time. Be there at 10 a.m. If you don't show, you can kiss the Benders goodbye along with the girl when we kidnap her if u don't show up."

As Frank was hanging up, he heard a sinister laugh on the other end. Since Vanessa was sound asleep, he pushed the hair off her forehead and kissed her. Then he climbed into the other bed and went to sleep.

At four in the morning, knocking on her door had awakened Vanessa. She got up and walked over to Frank and woke him up, telling him that someone was at the door. He told her to stay put as he proceeded to walk to the door and opened it. Standing in the doorway was her older brother Adam. Adam stood 6'1" around 220 pounds. He had a muscular physique and had dark brown hair. He wore a black t-shirt and black jeans. Vanessa just stood there, amazed to see him standing there. Then she thought, _maybe the reason I fell for Frank is because he reminded me of my brother. Same height, same hair color but other than that, the two of them are completely different._

Adam looked at Frank and wondered who he was and why he was in his sister's room. Adam then started a fistfight with Frank. After a minute or two, Vanessa screamed, "Stop it! The both of you! You two are acting like children." Upon hearing this, Frank groaned. _Great, I'm acting like Joe a little. That's the last thing I need._ Frank then told Vanessa, "Van, would you please explain to your brother why I'm here".

Vanessa motioned for Adam to have a seat on the bed and began to tell him about how she went looking for someone to help her after the family went missing and how she found and hired Frank to help with the case. She then went on to explain how Frank rescued her numerous times when she was in trouble and how the two of them eventually fell in love. At this, Adam gave her a look that said 'I don't need to hear that'.

Afterwards, Adam tells Frank, "Well, you better not hurt her." "I won't. I can assure you of that." Frank replied.

Vanessa then asks Adam how he escaped. Adam recalled to her how he escaped shortly after being taken, made his way back to the city and went to their home first. When he didn't find her there, he then went from hotel to hotel looking for her, showing people her picture. After a long search, he finally arrived at this hotel. When he finished, Vanessa hugged him and told him she was glad he was okay and safe. "You too, sis" Adam replied.

Later that morning, after the three of them had showered and ate a light breakfast, they went to the bar and waited for them. They arrived there at 9:50 a.m. When the man finally showed up, he glared at Adam and walked towards him with a glint in his eye that meant something bad was about to happen.


	6. Rescues and Wedding Bells

The gang member stomped towards Adam and began to fight him. The guy was huge with massive biceps and triceps. He wore black from head to toe. Then Frank joined into help Adam. After awhile, the fight was still going on. All the patrons either got out of the way or they left the bar, not wanting to be in the way. Then Vanessa wanted to help so she jumped onto the guy's back. The guy threw Vanessa off of him and threw her towards the wall with great strength. It almost knocked her unconscious. Upon seeing this, Frank becamed engulfed with anger. He first went over to Vanessa to see if she was ok. She told him she was except for a bruise here and there. Then Frank went back over to the guy and sucker punched him, thus knocking the guy to the ground.

After a moment or two, the guy got back up and picked Frank up by the waist and threw him the entire length of the bar. This knocked Frank out cold. Vanessa witnessed this and stormed over to the guy and slapped him as hard as she was physically able to. Then Adam sucker punched him as well. The guy finally gave up and just sat where he was, trying not to injure himself more. Both Adam and Vanessa quickly went over to Frank to get him to regain consciousness. Vanessa slapped him but not as hard as she slapped the other guy to try to get him to wake up. It wasn't until he arrived at the hospital that he regained consciousness.

Vanessa rode in the back of the ambulance with him. Upon entering the ER, she waited as patiently as she could while the doctors took over. Once he regained consciousness, she was back by his side. Meanwhile, Adam picked up the guy who started the fight and drove over to the hospital as well. Adam never let him out of his sight. They were now all in his hospital room. The doctors told Vanessa that he was to stay overnight just to run some tests, which would all turn out to be normal.

Upon seeing Adam standing near the door with the gang member in tow, Frank asked the guy "What did you want to tell us?"

"I was supposed to bring you and the girl to our hideout to see the family. But we were also looking for him," the guy replied, nodding towards Adam. He continued. "Once I arrived at the bar, I saw the brother and forgot what I originally came to do and was trying to take him back. Sorry for all the inconvenience but I was just doing what I had to do." He turned his attention towards Vanessa and told her apologetically, "Sorry for what I did to you miss but you were in the way."

The next day, after Frank was released, they all went to the gang's hideout. Once they arrived, they went inside and went to the room where the parents were held. When the guy wasn't looking, Frank tossed Adam a gun and then the two of them started shooting the gang members. Frank gently pushed Vanessa aside, telling her "Please try and stay out of the way. I wouldn't want anything to happen to you sweetheart."

Frank was standing in the doorway and Adam stood over by the window so the gang members couldn't escape, even though they were wounded. They all surrendered. Then Adam went to untie his parents and then used the restraints on the gang. Frank then called the police to come take them to the station. After he finished the call, he looked around. Vanessa was nowhere to be found. He told Adam, "Come on, we gotta find her." The two then sprinted outside upon hearing something going on.

Once outside, they saw another big, muscular guy holding a knife to Vanessa's throat. Vanessa's face was in complete fright. "Don't move or I'll slit her throat. You wouldn't want that now would you?" he said. Vanessa then was able to stomp on his foot, which loosened his grip around her and she was able to run towards Adam and Frank. Frank received her with open arms and hugged her tight. Then they shared a passionate kiss before Frank stopped, all the while formulating a plot in his head. Meanwhile, the guy regained his composure, and pulled out a gun.

He told Adam, "You take her to the car while I try to distract him." Everything went according to plan except when the big guy aimed his gun on Vanessa instead of Frank. Upon seeing that the guy was about to pull the trigger, Frank ran towards her. The shot was fired. Vanessa shrieked. Frank then fell to the ground, holding his upper arm, trying to get the bleeding to stop to no avail. Adam ran over to the guy and knocked the gun out of his hand. Then Adam picked up the gun and knocked the guy out.

Once the police arrived, they rounded up the gang members, which did not include Lopes or his top men because they were at a disclosed location watching everything on monitors. One of the members being hauled away shouted, "You'll pay for this." Adam walked back over to the couple. He saw that Vanessa was kneeling beside Frank with his head in her lap, while Frank continued holding his bloody arm. Adam had one of the officers to call for an ambulance while the gang was being arrested. The guy on the ground was awake again and shouted "We'll get even with you some day." before being hauled away by the police.

Later on that day, in the hospital, the Benders went to the hospital to check up on Frank's condition. Mark and Andrea thanked Frank for rescuing them and for being such a help to Vanessa during the whole ordeal. Then Mark told him he could have any reward Frank wanted. Frank thought about it for a second or two. He told them, "I have two actually. The first, I want to become the family's personal private investigator. Anything you all need help with regarding the law, I'm your man." Then he looked up at Vanessa who was at his side like always as of late. He smiled at her and then said, "Van, will you marry me? I know we've only known each other for a short while but I feel that this is the real thing and I don't want to wait any longer than I have to. As you know, I've had a hard time the past few years with having any kind of relationship with a woman. My heart was closed off to all women. I didn't want to take a chance for history to repeat itself.

"But then I met you and somehow, you made me feel like my old self and with your help we tore down the wall around my heart. So what do you say?"

Vanessa didn't miss a beat. As soon as he finished, she exclaimed, "Yes! I'll marry you!" Frank then picked up the ring he held in his hand and placed it on her finger. Vanessa then picked her hand up to admire it. The ring Frank gave her was the same engagement ring he had given to Nancy. He got it back when they returned Nancy's personal effects to him prior to the funeral. He held onto it as a memento of the memories he and Nancy had shared and also to remind him of what could happen if he ever fell in love again. Then he decided that some good should come out of it and he thought it was time for someone else to wear it.

A few months later, the two were married. All of their friends and family were there to witness the union between Franklin Richard Hardy and Vanessa Diane Bender. Frank had decided to get married once again in the same church he and Nancy got married in but he had taken precautions with this one. He had several officers dressed in plainclothes and had them dispersed around the area outside of the church as well as inside. Frank didn't want Vanessa to bear the same fate as Nancy. Days before, Frank went to Nancy's grave and told her what had occured during the last few months. Frank and Vanessa then went to the Caribbean for their honeymoon, visiting several of the islands to experience the island culture there. A month later, they were blessed with the announcement that Vanessa was pregnant.

Nine months later, Vanessa gave birth to a beautiful, healthy baby girl. They named her Audriana Lauren Hardy. Her name is a variation of both Frank and Vanessa's mother's names Andrea and Laura. Fenton Hardy was ecstatic at the fact that he was a grandfather. Fenton had made a joke to Joe about how he should give Fenton a grandchild now as well. Joe and Iola blushed and then Joe said "Dad..."


End file.
